Hiram took the opening kickoff and scored two plays later on a 63-yard touchdown pass. A blocked extra point gave Hiram a 6-0 lead with only 53-seconds played in the contest. Wabash moved the ball to midfield on its first possession, but the drive stalled at midfield and the Little Giants gave the ball back to the Terriers. Four plays later, Hiram was back in the endzone to lead 12-0.
That was the last time the game would be close.
The Little Giant offense answered the second Hiram score with a three play, 55-yard drive that ended with quarterback Jake Knott (Lafayette, IN/Jefferson) hitting Ryan Short (Indianapolis, IN/Perry Meridian) with a 48-yard strike down the middle of the field for a touchdown. After the defense held Hiram to only one first down on the next eight possessions by the Terriers, the Little Giants became a scoring machine.
The second quarter belonged to Wabash. The Little Giants scored four times in the second period to go from being down by five to take a 42-12 lead. Knott found Kurt Casper (Greenwood, IN/Center Grove) for a 10-yard TD pass to give Wabash a 14-12 lead. Two minutes later, freshman running back Korey Mauck (Poseyville, IN/North Posey) bowled into the endzone on a six-yard run. Knott and Short connected again for scoring passes of 37 and 18-yards. The 18-yard touchdown pass to Short was a one-play drive that were setup by interceptions by the Wabash defense. Senior Treven Upkes (Springfield, OR/Springfield) stepped in front of a Hiram pass and returned it to the 18 to give the Little Giants the scoring opportunity. The 37-yard TD pass was also a one-play scoring drive after a Hiram punt gave Wabash the ball at the Hiram 37 yard line.
Wabash took the opening kickoff of the second half and kept the pressure on the Terriers. Senior Brent Graber (Kokomo, IN/Northwestern) made a catch at the 40 yard line and eluded two tacklers to find his way to the endzone for the first time this season, with the entire play spanning 76 yards. The pass reception is the longest of Graber's career, and is the longest completion of the season for the Little Giants.
Casper added the final score of the game, making a spectacular catch in the corner of the endzone after the Hiram defender had tipped the pass. Casper dragged his feet to keep from going out of the back of the endzone and grabbed the tipped ball to put the final points on the scoreboard for the Little Giants.
That's when the win became secondary to Wabash.
On the ensuing kickoff, Little Giant kicker Todd Bower (Indianapolis, IN/Speedway) was lost for the season after breaking his right ankle trying to make a tackle. Bower had twice earned Wabash Special Teams Player of the Week honors, and was ranked sixth in the nation in field goals made per game. The junior kicker made the longest field goal of his career earlier this season, hitting a 46-yard attempt against Wittenberg.
After allowing Hiram 161 yards on the first six plays of the game, the Little Giant defense held the Terriers to 187 yards for the remainder of the contest. For the fourth consecutive game the Little Giant defense held the opponents under 100-yards rushing for the game, as Hiram finsihed with 75 yards on the ground. Wabash entered the game as the 10th best defense against the rush in Division III, allowing opponents an average of only 53.8 yards per game. Upkes led the Wabash defense with nine tackles and an interception. B.J. Hammer (Carmel, IN/Carmel) finished with eight tackles, three for losses totaling 25 yards, and two sacks for -22 yards. Wabash finished with five sacks in the ballgame.
Knott rewrote the Wabash and North Coast Athletic Conference record book with his six touchdown passes. The previous record for both Wabash and the NCAC was five in a game. Knott also moved from fifth to third on the Wabash career passing list. The sophomore has 4,253 passing yards after 17 career games. He is also third on the career total offense list with 4,495 yards, moving up from fourth place prior to the win against Hiram.
Wabash is now 5-2, 4-1 in the NCAC. The Little Giants will play their final three games at home, starting with Saturday's matchup against Allegheny College. Kickoff is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. at Byron P. Hollett Little Giant Stadium